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The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.

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Program Description

Overview The Save the Children Web of Support Initiative promotes quality out-of-school time programs for children ages 5–18 by focusing on three desired outcomes: constructive activities, caring adults, and safe places. Save the Children provides resources and assistance to community-based organizations, including school districts, to operate both school-site and community-site after school programs.
Start Date 1997
Scope national
Type after school, summer/vacation
Location urban, rural
Setting public schools, community-based organizations
Participants kindergarten through high school students
Number of Sites/Grantees over 100 Rural Community Partners and six Urban Collaboratives
Number Served approximately 7,000–9,000 youth
Components The Web of Support Initiative provides support in three areas: funding and resources, leadership training and development to improve program practices and program quality, and technical assistance and training in how to implement and use outcome evaluation as a framework for program improvement. Rural Community Partners are typically single local nonprofit agencies serving youth in rural areas. These Partners are located in rural areas in the Southwestern, Appalachian, and Eastern regions of the United States. Urban Collaboratives typically consist of two or more nonprofit organizations working together to serve at-risk youth in low-income urban environments. Each Urban Collaborative has a Facilitator who assists with the coordination of the Collaborative. Collaboratives are located in or near large metropolitan areas.

As part of the Web of Support initiative, Save the Children sought to develop the leadership capabilities of youth involved in the programs. Save the Children provided three different types of leadership development experiences for youth: the Save the Children Youth Summit, youth internships sponsored by Save the Children through Rural Community Partners and Urban Collaboratives (e.g., youth working as interns for the youth-serving nonprofit organizations), and other leadership opportunities offered in their communities by Partners and Collaboratives.
Funding Level $32 million (over three years)
Funding Sources Save the Children ($26 million over three years), the David and Lucile Packard Foundation ($3 million over three years), Denny's Family Restaurants (up to $1 million per year), and Irvine Foundation (Central Valley, California, expansion efforts)
Other The National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST) provides training and technical assistance to Rural Community Partners, Urban Collaboratives, and Save the Children regional office staff to improve the quality of out-of-school time programs. Aguirre International provides evaluation training and technical assistance to Save the Children regional and home office staff, Rural Community Partners, and Urban Collaboratives on how to evaluate programs and activities. The evaluation training uses an empowerment evaluation approach. Professional consultants (coaches) provide Train-the-Trainer workshops, on-site assistance, and phone assistance to staff. Annual evaluation trainings are also held in each region.


Evaluation

Overview The Web of Support evaluation has two parts: (1) individual outcomes-based evaluations at the site level and (2) an initiative-wide evaluation.

In the first part of the evaluation, each Rural Community Partner and Urban Collaborative conducts individual outcomes-based evaluations annually, with technical assistance from Aguirre International. They are required to examine the three components of a comprehensive out-of-school time program of the Web of Support Initiative: constructive activities, caring adults, and safe places. In keeping with the empowerment model of evaluation, the data collection methods used by Rural Community Partners and Urban Collaboratives vary.

The purpose of the second part of the evaluation, the initiative-wide evaluation, is to examine three types of outcomes: child/youth outcomes, Rural Community Partner and Urban Collaborative outcomes, and Save the Children–U.S. programs outcomes. These evaluations are conducted annually, and the third-year evaluation looked at findings across the first three years in addition to that year's findings.
Evaluator Aguirre International
Evaluations Profiled 1997–98 Web of Support Initiative wide evaluation. Annual report.
1998–99 Web of Support Initiative wide evaluation. Annual report.
1999–2000 Web of Support Initiative wide evaluation. Annual report.
2000–2001 Web of Support Initiative wide evaluation. Annual report.
Evaluations Planned N/A
Report Availability Terao, K. L., Morell, L. C., Stevenson, C. L., & Sloane, K. J. (1999). 1997–98 Web of Support Initiative wide evaluation. Annual report. San Mateo, CA: The Aguirre Group.

Terao, K. L., Morell, L., & Stevenson, C. (2000). 1998–99 Web of Support Initiative wide evaluation. Annual report. San Mateo, CA: The Aguirre Group.

Terao, K. L., Morell, L., & Stevenson, C. (2001). 1999–2000 Web of Support Initiative wide evaluation. Annual report. San Mateo, CA: The Aguirre Group.

Terao, K. L., Morell, L., Stevenson, C., & Moulton, J. (2002). 2000–2001 Web of Support Initiative wide evaluation. Annual report. San Mateo, CA: The Aguirre Group.

Contacts

Evaluation Ken Terao
Evaluation Specialist
480 East 4th Avenue, Unit A
San Mateo, CA 94401-3349
Tel: 650-373-4900
Fax: 650-348-0260
Email: kterao@aiweb.com
Program Leigh Higgins
Save the Children Federation Inc. U.S.
54 Wilton Road
Westport, CT 06880
Tel: 203-221-4000
Fax: 203-221-4082
Email: lhiggins@savechildren.org
Profile Updated August 19, 2004
Evaluation 4: 2000–2001 Web of Support Initiative Wide Evaluation: Annual Report

Draft Version: This profile has not yet received feedback from evaluators or program staff.
Evaluation Description
Evaluation Purpose To examine Year 4 of the initiative and four types of outcomes related to the initiative: child and youth outcomes, Rural Community Partner and Urban Collaborative outcomes, Save the Children–U.S. Programs outcomes, and community outcomes.
Evaluation Design Non-Experimental: Save the Children Community Partners evaluated approximately 70 constructive activities designed to enhance cognitive/intellectual growth and about 60 activities meant to facilitate social/emotional or physical health development. Data were collected from 58 Rural Community Partners and seven Urban Community Partners. Information about child and youth outcomes was obtained by evaluators through review of evaluation reports produced by the Partners. Evaluators conducted additional data collection to examine Partners' outcomes and Save the Children–U.S. Programs outcomes.
Data Collection Methods Document Review: The initiative-wide evaluation examined approximately 140 outcome evaluation reports compiled by individual programs. For the 2000–2001 year, Web of Support focused on evaluation of cognitive/intellectual outcomes and a second outcome area of each Partner's choice (e.g., social/emotional, health, additional cognitive/intellectual, etc.). Most Partners focused their evaluation reports on academic assistance (tutoring and homework help) or literacy programs. Several Partners focused on computer-training programs or activities promoting progress in social skills (e.g., recreation programs).

Interviews/Focus Groups: Telephone interviews were conducted with Save the Children regional and home office staff to measure the degree to which they and designated staff had learned how to provide training and technical assistance in outcome evaluation and quality program improvement, the effectiveness of Aguirre International's training and technical assistance in evaluation, and the extent to which Partners had been able to use the evaluation process and results to improve their services.

Observation: Observations of programs were made during site visits and trainings to ensure the quality of the data collected by individual programs.

Surveys/Questionnaires: Surveys were developed and administered to examine outcomes for four identified stakeholder groups: youth interns, Rural and Urban Community Partners, Save the Children Federation, Inc. – US programs, and communities.

Surveys were administered to youth interns who attended the National Youth Summit or participated in Save the Children's internship program. These were youth selected by individual Partners to participate in the internship program.

In addition, surveys were administered to all Community Partners to examine how they were using evaluation and their level of skills in developing quality out-of-school time programming and internal evaluations. These surveys also asked about their programs' collaborative efforts with other stakeholders in the community and about their youth leadership development opportunities.
Data Collection Timeframe Data were collected between October 2000 and December 2001.

Findings:
Formative/Process Findings
Activity Implementation Partners provided tutoring, literacy enhancement, computer training, community service, education in prevention, recreation and teambuilding activities, cultural enrichment programs, leadership development opportunities, and other innovative programs designed to meet the needs of youth in their communities.

One site in Zuni, New Mexico, implemented the Zuni Pueblo's Native-American Authors Project for students aged 14–18, in which six Native-American authors shared knowledge with youth on writing and publishing. After attending lectures and workshops, the students had the opportunity to write an essay and submit it to a Language Art Team, who critiqued the students for content, punctuation, spelling, and grammar. Of the 182 students evaluated, 84% published one or more original stories in a student publication.

Ninety-two percent of the youth interns surveyed had opportunities to plan and implement community projects or activities, such as festivals and cultural events, environmental beautification projects, food and clothing distribution to needy families, and literacy programs.

Save the Children held a 4-day Youth Summit in April 2001. The 4-day Summit gave participants a chance to meet other youth from around the country, to better understand Save the Children's mission, to learn about the legislative process and how to work with the media, and to help them prepare for their internships. The overall purpose of the Summit was to challenge and motivate youth to take an advocacy role in support of their communities. Youth attended workshops where they were given practical, step-by-step instructions in how to define and set achievable goals, research topics using various accessible, reliable sources, and speak to people in positions of power. Youth chose issues and worked in groups to prepare for the visit to Capitol Hill on the fourth day of the Summit, where they made presentations to representatives in Congress or their staffs on issues that were important to them.

Approximately 93 youth participated in Save the Children's national internship program during the 2000–2001 school year or summer.

When asked about the responsibilities of their internships, over 90% of the respondents reported that being a positive role model or supervising and working with younger children were some of their duties. Eighty-one percent of the interns reported that their responsibilities were planning and organizing activities. Between 55% and 70% indicated that they were responsible for mentoring, managing projects or activities, assisting staff with implementing activities, tutoring, maintaining the facility (e.g., cleaning, repairs, general upkeep), motivating peers, training other youth, doing community service work, and running errands or assisting staff.
Systemic Infrastructure Ninety-eight percent of the Community Partners reported collaborating with other groups and organizations since October 2000 to provide services to children. Eighty-five percent of the 60 responding Partners had collaborated with elementary and secondary schools and school districts. About one-third (22) had worked with community organizations, and another third with state and county agencies. Roughly 18% had worked with churches, and 10–13% with social service organizations, local youth organizations, or local colleges. Some worked with senior citizen organizations, housing authorities, summer school and after school programs, hospitals, Head Start, and local TV stations.

When asked about the types and degree of collaboration among Partners since October 2000, the following percentages of Partners reported “quite a bit” of each type of collaboration: regular communication – 50%, shared resources – 40%, planned together – 34%, and collaborated in program implementation – 29%. Other collaborative efforts reported by Community Partners included shared meeting places and recruitment of additional volunteers.

Most of the Rural and Urban Community Partners surveyed reported that the training they had received in program improvement, evaluation, collaboration, and youth leadership development was “helpful” or “very helpful.” Partners particularly valued the “hands-on” learning approach.

The telephone survey of nine Save the Children home and area office staff members revealed that all respondents provided training and technical assistance (T/TA) to their Community Partners in program development and in evaluation, and eight of the nine provided T/TA in collaboration and youth leadership.

Community Partners reported being “quite” comfortable in conducting evaluation tasks; three-quarters or more reported being comfortable using results to enhance existing programs and to develop new programs.

Most Community Partners found the evaluation process useful, and approximately two-thirds reported having made use of evaluation findings to modify their programs.

Most home and area office staff reported that Partners utilized evaluation for fundraising, resource development, program improvement, and planning.

Seven of the nine home and area office staff members surveyed reported that they felt their evaluation skills were very good.


Summative/Outcome Findings

Academic Of the 5,358 evaluated youth, 71% achieved or exceeded the desired result in one or more areas of cognitive/intellectual growth. (The desired result varied by each Partner's evaluation criteria.)

Seventy-one percent of the 1,741 students evaluated in a tutoring/homework assistance program met or exceeded the program's level of success by maintaining high standards or showing improvement in one or more of the following: grades, homework completion, study habits, or other measures of academic success.

Seventy-two percent of the 2,706 students evaluated in literacy programs achieved or exceeded the desired result in reading ability, comprehension, or interest. (The desired result varied by each Partner's evaluation criteria.)
Community Development Of the 50 Community Partners who responded, either nine or ten reported that their participation in the Web of Support had affected their community in each of the following ways: community participation and comfort with their program had increased, they had been able to provide a safety net for local children and families, they had been able to offer resources and activities for the community.

Some Partners reported that being a part of the Web of Support helped the community to work together to define needs and solve problems, and to see the positive effects of their programs. Other respondents reported that the community gained access to computer training and had improved family practices (i.e., in health care and child care).

Three Partners gave neutral or negative responses about the initiative's effect on their community. One reported that there had been no effect, another noted that the Web of Support had not helped them to provide activities for adults who needed services, and one was still working to implement the Web of Support program.
Systemic Of the 53 Partners who responded to a question about improvements in quality, 30% (16) said that they were able to provide youth with more resources, such as books, meals, supplies, and computer use because of their involvement with the Web of Support.

Over 70% of the Partners reported that they had “quite a bit” or “a lot” of understanding of how to improve an out-of-school time program.

Communication among Save the Children staff and Community Partners generally improved: Over two-thirds felt that communication had improved either “some” or “a lot.”

In regards to program improvement at Community Partners sites, seven of the nine respondents indicated that they had acquired strong program development skills, including learning how to help Partners increase resources and enhance program capacity.
Youth Development Of 4,893 youth evaluated in areas other than cognitive/intellectual activities, 78% exceeded or achieved the desired result in one or more areas of cognitive/intellectual growth, social/emotional development, or health-related development.

Seventy-three percent of the 1,689 students evaluated in programs designed to develop social skills showed improved behavior or maintained their good behavior.

Eighty-four percent of the 1,245 students evaluated in cultural enrichment programs increased their knowledge of, interest in, appreciation for, or pride in their cultures.

Ninety-five percent of those who attended the Youth Summit reported learning about other cultures, and 99% reported learning about what other youth are doing in their communities.

When asked what they had learned about promoting a cause or lobbying for social change, 47 of 80 Youth Summit attendees responded that they had learned to stand up for what they believed without feeling intimidated, to approach different people and communicate their ideas confidently, to conduct presentations, and to prepare through careful research and education.

The proportion of Youth Summit attendees who felt comfortable making public presentations rose from just under 60% before the Summit to just over 90% afterward.

Some Summit attendees reported that they learned about action they could take to resolve specific issues important to their communities such as education in substance abuse or the need to acquire recreation centers in their communities.

The majority of Summit survey respondents (94%) reported that they learned how to find information on social issues.

All of the interns surveyed believed they learned to take responsibility, and 99% reported that they became better leaders. They also learned to communicate better, collaborate with others, work in teams, and supervise young children.

© 2016 Presidents and Fellows of Harvard College
Published by Harvard Family Research Project